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Dell Offers Ubuntu PC With ATI Graphics

Phoronix: Dell Offers Ubuntu PC With ATI Graphics

Yesterday we shared that Dell has started shipping Ubuntu 8.04 PCs. Initially there are only three "Dellbuntu" PCs (two notebooks and one desktop) with this Long-Term Support (LTS) release of Ubuntu, but additional models will begin appearing as soon as next month...

I'm wondering if a compositing manager is enabled by default... and I answer myself "No"!
ATI cannot play watchable (windowed) accelerated videos and cannot do usable (windowed) OpenGL when a composite manager is enabled as NVidia does; and it seems we have to wait DRI2.
This is not good from a marketing point of view, IMHO. (Average) users want fireworks on the desktop (I managed to convert my friends to Linux showing them Compiz naïf effects...); I do have Compiz enabled when I recompile my kernel, repackage my hacked software and manage my server via ssh. Otherwise Gnome is boring.
But people expect something Vista-like or (better) MacOSX-like.

I really am not that interested in what Dell are doing with Linux so long as they continue to only do it in the US. The truth of the matter for anyone outside of the US is that Dell are still a MicroSoft OEM. Sure they have the commercial Linuxes on high-end workstations and servers, but I'm looking for budget hardware with Linux.

This is interesting as really, Linux would be an ideal choice for the hardware range that was pushing prices down. 2 years ago, laptop prices here in Ireland were closing on the €300 mark. Now? Finding something under €500 is hard. Realistically, in this price range Linux would be a credible contender with a sensible software stack on top of it, as it doesn't have the massive hardware costs of Vista which is what pushed the price back up!

Not sure where are you looking, because this is available in many countries outside of the US.

Ireland, and Dells Irish website states that Ubuntu machines are not available in Ireland. Given that Ireland handles a large part of the EU market, one could assume that this applies to the whole EU.

Originally Posted by some-guy

???
A few years ago you couldn't fine a laptop cheaper than $800 in the US, now $600 is normal, occasionally there's deals for $300

Well, I've been watching Dells prices in Ireland, and the price of their cheapest laptop has gone up in the last year. It has also had a serious spec boost, and changed OS from XP to Vista.

What you will also find with Dell is that the cheapest laptops are not in their home-user section, but in the small business section. For some reason they think most consumers are stupid enough to fall for this. Sadly they are right...

"After months of testing and development we are ready to release Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) on select Dell consumer systems. For consumers in the United States, France, Germany, Spain, Canada, United Kingdom and many Latin American countries (like Mexico and Colombia) Ubuntu 8.04 will be offered on the XPS M1330N and Inspiron 1525N notebooks and the Inspiron 530N."

I guess that means the Ubuntu machines might still not be available in Ireland itself, although I imagine that will change pretty quickly since they're both in the EU so shipping & customs shouldn't be a big deal.